The scoop on mangoes

Sure, we love Georgia peaches. And come Thanksgiving, we'll be looking to Massachusetts for cranberries.

But right now, through the end of the growing season in October, South Florida mangoes are our favorite fruit.

We happen to live in the country's mango epicenter. California and Hawaii grow them, but if you want to know anything about the fruit, you come to South Florida, to Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Coral Gables. Recently, the garden held its 18th annual International Mango Festival with experts, chefs and more than 9,000 mango enthusiasts gathering to celebrate the mangoes of India. More than 900 trees were sold.

Noris Ledesma, the garden's curator of tropical fruit, began her love affair with mangoes growing up in Colombia. She oversees Fairchild's collection of more than 500 varieties on its farm in south Miami-Dade County. It's the world's most important mango collection, with specimens from across the planet.

We turned to Ledesma to find out more about South Florida's favorite backyard fruit tree.

A variety known as the Haden is the most popular. It was born of another variety's seed by Capt. F.O. Haden in Coconut Grove. It remains the most popular mango for home gardens. But Keitt and Valencia Pride also are popular.

When did mangoes first

come to Florida?

The first big introduction came between 1890 and 1930. David Fairchild founded the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction in 1898, and he traveled the world in search of tropical fruits to grow here. He brought hundreds of varieties to Florida.

How far north in Florida

do mangoes grow?

Generally speaking, the south side of Lake Okeechobee is the cut-off point, but crazy aficionados as far north as Michigan have successfully grown mangoes in containers. They bring them inside during winter.

Can mangoes really be grown in containers?

Ledesma calls them "condo mangoes" and recommends three varieties in particular: Fairchild, Manilita and Neelum.

What's the best mango Ledesma ever tasted?

"I don't have a favorite mango because that changes every year. Every mango has a different meal for me. This one for breakfast, this one for lunch and this one for dinner."

But she was captivated by the Alphonso the first time she tasted one in India. One of the sweetest mangoes in the world, it's virtually fiber-free and perfect for eating out of hand. Unfortunately, it doesn't grow as easily as other varieties in South Florida. She also likes the tiny Carrie mango, which was first grown in Boynton Beach.

"Nobody pays much attention to it because it looks like nothing," she says. "But the first Carrie that ripens on the tree is mine. Nobody touches it."

Were the mangoes from your Colombian childhood different from those grown here?

"Most of them are Florida mangoes," says Ledesma. "I grew up with mangoes my whole life. When I came to the U.S. 10 years ago, I realized they were my mangoes. They came from Coral Gables, Coconut Grove. I now know the original trees. This is amazing. I was thinking they were our [Colombian]mangoes."

How are imported mangoes different from Florida mangoes?

All imported mangoes must be dipped in hot water to kill pests. That treatment can change significantly the texture of the fruit.

How many acres of mangoes are commercially grown in South Florida?

There are surprisingly few exclusive mango growers, but Ledesma believes that's about to change with our renewed interest in locally grown produce.

Are mangoes hard to sell?

Not in Miami. For many of us, mangoes are memories. "We have consumers from all over the world. They are not buying a mango. They are buying memories. When you talk with someone from India or Cuba, they remember the mangoes they had when they were kids."

How are mangoes different in other countries?

"We select food according to who we are," says Ledesma. "For example, India is the spicy country. They like things that are strong, deep and concentrated, so their mangoes are that way. If you go to Thailand, they are the masters of delicacy. Everything has to be perfect and beautiful. Their mangoes are that way. They have beautiful shapes, very delicate. In America, we are sales people. We select things that can make money and people like. That's why we have been so successful." American mangoes grow easily and look beautiful.

What have you noticed most about the different ways people cook with mangoes when you've traveled to mango-growing countries?

"Here, fruit means something that is juicy and red, maybe yellow, and it has to be sweet. On the other side of the planet, fruit means something salty, spicy and flavors that you don't associate with fruit. It's like avocado for us in the States. We think of them as vegetables. But if you go to Brazil, they think of them as fruit. Avocado, for them, is ice cream and smoothies."